Preservation Institute Nantucket
Summer 2025: Looking for New Guinea
June 9 – August 8, 2025
Explore Nantucket’s heritage this summer with a trip to the nation’s oldest operating field school for historic preservation, Preservation Institute Nantucket (PIN). Since 1972, the University of Florida’s PIN program has hosted over 700 students to document and safeguard Nantucket’s architectural and cultural heritage.
This summer, we will focus on the historic neighborhood of New Guinea, home to Nantucket’s most diverse and dynamic working-class community, including African, Cape Verdean, Portuguese, and Azorean residents. Since the early 18th century, Black whalers, formerly enslaved people, and Wampanoag lived here, as property owners, businesspeople, and champions of equality and freedom during a time when slavery was legal and ubiquitous across the U.S.
Many of Nantucket’s notable Black residents are buried in the nearby ‘Coloured Cemetery,’ and from their stories we understand the cultural significance of New Guinea. Today, it is widely accepted that New Guinea has gentrified and many of the original buildings no longer exist, but is this really true? Join us to examine the existing buildings and the archival record, to discover the long lineage of diversity in New Guinea, and to connect known social history to place. As a PIN student, you will work with local experts and the community to discover and build the untold narrative. Resources will include archival records, newspapers, census, and deeds, as well as architectural and material investigations of existing buildings. Your work will be shared through public presentations, ArcGIS StoryMaps, and Massachusetts historic documentation reporting.
Of course, time for fun is an integral part of PIN! Explore local museums and restaurants, celebrate the 4th of July festivities, and enjoy the surf and sun at pristine beaches. Kayak and paddleboard through winding creeks, embark on bike adventures, and savor the flavors of Nantucket’s farm-fresh produce, freshly caught seafood, and local brews. A summer at PIN is a life-changing experience, bridging technical knowledge in the field of historic preservation with real-world applications, and forging life-long friendships and professional connections. We hope to see you “on island” soon!
A ZOOM Open House will be held on Wednesday, February 12, from 12-1 EST. Please email hpinfo@dcp.ufl.edu to receive the Zoom Link.
PIN is open to graduate and upper-level undergraduate students from any institution across the world.